Follow BI

Norwegian Renters' Association just lashed out at Airbnb

The Norwegian Renters' Association, LBF, has declarded that renting out apartments on Airbnb ought to be regulated.

"We think that restrictions on commercial rentals on Airbnb should be established," Lars Aasen, head of LBF, tells NTB.

Ad

Aasen specifically problematizes Airbnb rentals that are taking the form of larger scale commercial operations, and thinks that rentals should be subject to the approval of the authorities based on established criteria.

"We must have a limit for how long it's allowed to let on Airbnb, and have some system of approval. The advantage would be that the authorities then gain control of which apartments are rented and when taxes should be paid," he says to NTB.

According to LBF there is an increasing number of people buying apartments only to rent them out on Airbnb. One in three Airbnb hosts reportedly offers discounts for long-term rentals, which the LBF sees as a indicator of the increasing amount of commercial renting, reports the Local.

Commercial Airbnb hosts can easily avoid paying due taxes, and additionally make the housing market less secure by for renters because some security normally provided by law is not granted by the Airbnb contract, writes the Local.